Field 1.
This invention relates to compound bows. It is specifically directed to an improved cable attachment assembly for attaching cables to the opposite limb tips of a bow.
State of the Art: 2.
Compound bows conventionally include a rigging arrangement utilizing eccentrics mounted to pivot on axles at the tips of opposite limbs extending from the respective opposite ends of a handle. The eccentrics are interconnected by. cables. Two substantially identical cables extend from attachment to opposite ends of a bowstring from which each cable then connects to an eccentric at one limb tip. Each cable then extends from its associated eccentric to connect to an attachment device carried by the opposite limb tip.
Various methods and devices have been utilized for attaching the tension end (the end opposite the end connected to the bowstring) of a cable to a limb. Early versions of the compound bow simply attached the anchored end of a cable to the axle of the eccentric carried by that limb. Subsequent versions of the compound bow utilized various arrangements, typically called yokes or yoked assemblies. These yoke assemblies function more evenly to distribute the forces on opposite sides of the eccentric, thereby greatly to reduce the twisting forces prevalent in earlier arrangements. Typical of such yoke assemblies is that disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,300,521 which comprises a circular disk with a circumferential groove and a central aperture. A length of cable extends around the groove of the disk with its opposite ends straddling the centric and connecting to opposite ends of the eccentric axle. The attachment end of a cable extending from the eccentric mounted at the opposite limb tip extends through the central aperture of the disk and is thereby attached. Yoke anchors of this type adequately connect the cables to the bow limbs but are so located and arranged that either the bowstring or a portion of the opposite cable (the segment extending from attachment to the proximate eccentric) may make contact with the yoke assembly when an arrow is launched.
Recently issued U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,167, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein, describes various yoke cable devices shown by previous U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,546,754; 4,440,142; 4,337,749; 4,333,443; the aforementoned 4,300,521 and 4,064,862. U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,167 recognizes the limitations of such previous yoke devices in connection with adjustments of the tension cables, and proposes an improved adjustment mechanism whereby a tension cable is connected to a separate yoke cable through a linkage fixture of adjustable length.
Other yoke cable arrangements are disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,478,203; 4,561,413; and 4,365,611.
A characteristic common to prior art cable anchoring systems is the reliance upon a separate yoke cable or equivalent bracket device as a linkage between the axle and a tension cable. No practical system has heretofore evolved for attaching a cable directly to an axle while obtaining the force distribution benefits of a yoke assembly. Moreover, these devices have generally not avoided the problem of string or cable interference when an arrow is launched.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,524,750, which does not relate to a yoke assembly, suggests the avoidance o string contact by pulling the tension runs forward. The eccentric end of one tension cable is held near the anchored end of the other cable by means of a double sleeve fixture.